Out of Steam

Day 23, this is my last stop on the NaNoWriMo local. Time to get off the NaNo train.

But it ain’t a bad thing – really.

I thought the more you wrote stories, the easier it gets. Not in my case. I started to struggle around the 24k mark and it has been like pulling my own teeth for the last 10,000 words.

This year, the writing has been as hard as it was the first couple of years I participated. I thought I had a good story idea, but I got to the point where I could no longer develop it and keep it interesting. It’s the suckiest most disjointed thing I’ve written in years.

I know you’re allowed to suck during NaNo, but the most important thing is – it’s supposed to be FUN. It hasn’t been fun for a while now. When I finally realized that I knew it was time to stop. I’m actually relieved.

The main reason for coming up short in my fiction this year is that I’m involved in a couple of non-fiction subjects that I’m more passionate about participating in and writing about than writing fiction stories.

My participation in NaNo has been keeping me away from these other interests and feel it’s high time I give them my full attention once again.

Will this be my last time with NaNo? I don’t know – perhaps. Never say never.

We’ll see next year.

I may not be into writing fiction at this time, but I still love reading it and hope to read a few books by some the folks here at NaNoWriMo.

Best of Luck to You All.
~W~

The Truth on How to Write a Book

This article is on best selling author Scott Berkum’s blog . In short it’s excellent:

Every author I know gets asked the same question: How do you write a book?…

Here’s the short honest truth: 20% of the people who ask me are hoping to hear this – Anyone can write a book. They want permission. Truth is you don’t need any. There is no license required. No test to take…

Being famous and wealthy: Now this is the kicker. About 50% of the time the real thing people want to know is how to become a famous millionaire rock-star author dude. As if a) I qualified, b) I could explain how it happened, or c) I’d be willing to tell.

Read the entire article at Scott’s blog

Why We Write

This says it all…

A Little Freaked Out

Obviously by now everyone’s heard about the mass murder shootings at Fort Hood.

Like everyone else I watched the news in rapt attention.

Listening to news radio during  my morning commute they made following distinctions about the event:

1. The shootings were done by a single gunman
2. It appears that Major Hasan snapped
3. He used semi-auto pistols
4. He performed the shootings in a calm, controlled manner
5. He was stopped by a civilian police officer who shot him
6. Hasan killed 13 people: 12 Soldiers and 1 civilian (rumored o be a cop)

When I heard this, I got a little freaked out.

Why?

I started writing my NaNoWriMo novel this past Sunday, just like must people who are participating. The very first scene I wrote this past Sunday was eerily frikkin similar to current events.

1. It involved a lone gunman
2. He was a combat veteran who snapped
3. He used a semi-automatic pistol
4. He went around in a calm, controlled manner shooting people
5. He was stopped by being shot by the police
6. He killed 13 people: 12 civilians and 1 cop

It was these coincidences that freaked me out. Here I wrote this scene on Sunday only for a real-life major event with glaring similarities to occur four days later on Thursday.

The most significant difference between my story and the real one is that the shooter in my story died after being shot by the cops.

 

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Off to A Decent Start

I wrote 2,221 words of story today. Not bad.

I had set the goal of getting in 5,000 but it was so nice out after yesterday’s deep gloom that I just had to get out of the house for a while and enjoy the day.

Robert Frost Revelations

Taking a break from writing my NaNoWriMo novel, I visited my friend Rick Holmes, our town historian. As always we had a terrific conversation. When they open the authentic Irish Pub across the street from the museum in the old fire station, we’ll be having our talks over a pint of Guinness.

I bought his latest book about Derry, and as he signed it he told me the next book he’s going to write is about Robert Frost during his years in Derry from 1900 – 1910.

He related an awesome story, told by Frost’s own daughter, about one of Mr. Frost’s most famous poems Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening.

It was actually inspired by an event in Derry, but the poem itself was not published for another 20 years. Rick told me the meaning behind what inspired the poem and exactly where Frost was and what he was doing at that time.

I know exactly where that spot is and have been there dozens of times. From now, on whenever I visit that spot, I will look upon it very differently forever more.

Rick also said he has a photograph of Frost from these years that has never been published. I can hardly wait the 2-3 years before this book finally sees publication.

Now I know what I know about this poem, it has a whole new and deeper meaning to me than it had before:

Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound’s the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.